Chapter 3 - THE MATRIARCH'S DECEIT
The penthouse was warm,
smelling of cedar and expensive leather.
Mave sat on the edge of the white velvet sofa,
wrapped in a thick cashmere blanket.
Posie was in the kitchen with a female staff member,
eating a bowl of warm soup and pointing at the fish in the aquarium.
I stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows,
watching the city lights flicker in the storm.
"Talk to me,
Mave,"
I said,
not turning around.
"Tell me what my mother said to you."
Mave was silent for a long time.
I could hear the rhythmic ticking of the clock on the wall.
"She came to me the day after you left for the London summit,"
Mave began.
"She had photos of you and Coraline together."
"She told me that the Ashfords had already signed the agreement."
"She said that if I stayed,"
"I would be the reason the Hail family fell into a bloody war with the Ashfords."
I closed my eyes,
remembering the London summit.
My mother had insisted I go,
claiming it was vital for the family business.
"She told me you agreed with her,"
Mave continued,
her voice breaking.
"She said you were too cowardly to tell me yourself."
"And then she showed me the medical report from my doctor."
I turned around,
my blood turning to ice.
"What medical report?"
"The one confirming I was pregnant,"
Mave said.
"She had intercepted it."
"She told me that if I didn't disappear,"
"she would make sure I never saw the baby."
"She threatened to have me committed to a facility,"
"somewhere where no one would ever find me."
"I was twenty-two,
Garrett."
"I had no money,
no family,
and your mother owned the city."
"So I ran."
I smashed my fist against the window frame.
The glass didn't break,
but the sound echoed like a gunshot.
"She told me you ran off with an architect from Boston,"
I growled.
"She even showed me a letter you supposedly wrote."
"I never wrote a letter,"
Mave said.
"I spent the last three years working three jobs at a time just to pay for a studio apartment in Queens."
"I sold my engagement ring to pay for the delivery."
"I didn't want you to find us,
Garrett."
"I thought you hated me."
"I thought you had chosen Coraline over us."
I walked over to her and dropped to my knees on the floor.
I took her shaking hands in mine.
"I never stopped looking for you,"
I whispered.
"But every trail I followed ended in a dead end."
"I realize now,"
"my mother was the one erasing your footsteps."
The door to the kitchen opened,
and Posie ran out,
laughing.
She tripped over the edge of the rug and fell.
Before Mave could move,
I was there.
I picked up the little girl,
feeling her small heart beating against my chest.
She didn't cry.
She just looked at me with those gray eyes and tilted her head.
"Dada?"
she asked,
her voice tiny and uncertain.
The word broke me into a thousand pieces.
"Yes,"
I said,
tears finally blurring my vision.
"I'm your Dada."
I looked at Mave,
whose face was buried in her hands.
"Wesley!"
I roared.
Wesley appeared in the doorway instantly.
"Yes,
boss?"
"Bring my mother here,"
I said,
my voice devoid of all mercy.
May you like
"And tell her if she doesn't come willingly,"
"she can come in handcuffs."
